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Effect of surgical intervention on circulating tumor cells in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck using a negative enrichment technology

Authors

  • Kris R. Jatana MD,

    Corresponding author
    1. Department of Pediatric Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
    2. Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
    • Corresponding author: K. R. Jatana, Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Nationwide Children's Hospital, 555 South 18th Street, Suite 2A, Columbus, Ohio 43205. E-mail: Kris.Jatana@osumc.edu

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  • Priya Balasubramanian PhD,

    1. William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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  • Kyle P. McMullen MD,

    1. Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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  • Jas C. Lang PhD,

    1. Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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  • Theodoros N. Teknos MD,

    1. Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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  • Jeffrey J. Chalmers PhD

    1. William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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  • Kris R. Jatana and Priya Balasubramanian contributed equally to this work and share co-first authorship.

ABSTRACT

Background

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of surgical intervention on detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN.)

Methods

We utilized a negative depletion technique to identify cytokeratin (CK)-positive CTCs. The numbers of CTCs immediately before and after surgical resection were compared.

Results

Seventy-six blood samples from 38 patients with SCCHN were examined. Seventy-nine percent of the patients had CTCs detected before and after surgery. A total of 7.89% had no CTCs before surgery, yet had CTCs identified after surgery. Overall, 60.5% of patients had an increased number of CTCs/mL after surgery with a mean increase of 6.63-fold. A statistically significant increase in CTCs was seen after surgery (p = .02).

Conclusion

The timing of sample collection in patients with SCCHN who have surgical intervention can potentially impact the number of CTCs identified. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 38: 1799–1803, 2016

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